UPDATE: Lion investigates data misuse following cyber attack
Lion's XXXX and Little Creatures breweries are back online and have resumed production following a cyber attack last week.
The company experienced a partial IT system outage last week following a ransomware attack.
Lion’s IT teams and expert cyber advisors have worked around the clock for more than a week on the issue, which is still creating problems for breweries aside from XXXX and Little Creatures' Fremantle and Geelong operations.
The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age have reported that Lion has been hit by a second cyber attack that has further disrupted its IT systems, while ITWire says REvil Windows ransomware is responsible for the issues.
“We apologise to our consumers and customers, especially those who are only just getting their own venues back up and running following COVID-19 closures," Lion said. "We thank them for their patience as we do everything we can to get back to normal supply levels.”
Lion said the full restoration process is taking time, but noted: “It’s important that we do this methodically and safely as we work to resume normal business operations.
“There remains no evidence that any of the information contained in our system (including financial or personal information) has been affected. This is something that we will continue to review closely as part of our ongoing investigations.
“We have notified the authorities of the incident; and we will work alongside the relevant government authorities, law enforcement agencies and privacy regulators, as required.
“We would also like to take this opportunity to remind everyone to be vigilant about cyber safety, particularly in terms of telephone, SMS, email and social media phishing scams requesting personal information or payment of money. It’s advisable to avoid opening attachments from unknown senders and ensure that any communications are legitimate before responding.”
Situation a "national challenge"
Across Lion’s Australian and New Zealand adult beverages businesses, the brewer continues to have limited visibility of some products in its systems.
The impacts include a number of temporary beer shortages or out-of-stocks across both packaged (bottle/can) and keg brands.
“While our systems are offline, we have worked very hard to be able to supply a limited number of key products to our customers,” Lion explained.
“We will continue to accept and fulfil orders as best we can, using interim manual processes where we need to.”
Australian Hotels Association SA general manager Ian Horne described the situation to the Adelaide Advertiser yesterday as a “national challenge” for Lion.
“Certainly every hotel would be impacted to a greater or lesser extent but they’re working through it,” he said.
However, Horne said there was no need to panic.
“I don’t think we’ve gotten to the stage where it’s Slim Dusty with A Pub With No Beer,” he said.
“There’s beer – it may not be from a tap always but the Lion product is readily available as are a range of other products.”
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